SOG busts ₹50-lakh hybrid ganja racket in Ahmedabad; two held, hunt on for key supplier

The Ahmedabad city Special Operations Group (SOG) has unearthed a high-value narcotics racket with the seizure of hybrid ganja worth an estimated ₹50 lakh from Nikol and the arrest of two men in a follow-up raid at Rakhial. Police said they are now searching for the alleged main supplier, identified as Sahdev.

ACP (SOG) BC Solanki said that acting on a tip-off, an SOG team intercepted two men at Dharnidhar Estate in Rakhial and recovered 500 grams of high-potency hybrid ganja from their possession. The duo, Pratik Kumawat and Ravi Patel, were immediately taken into custody and booked under provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Investigators estimate that the wider consignment, sourced from the same network, is valued at about ₹50 lakh in the city’s illicit market.

Profiles of the accused

Pratik, police said, works with a private marketing firm on C G Road, while Ravi is employed with a printing company in Surat. Ravi had travelled to Ahmedabad to visit his mother, who lives in Nikol.

According to Solanki, Ravi is a habitual consumer of narcotics. “His dependence on drugs appears to have drawn him into this network,” the officer said.

Link to supplier 

Preliminary questioning revealed that the two had allegedly procured the contraband from Sahdev, a man they first came in contact with at Ranunja some weeks ago. Police believe the transaction was planned during their regular meetings at a neighbourhood paan parlour.

“The two accused have admitted that they collected the ganja from Sahdev. We are pursuing leads to trace him and establish the source of supply,” Solanki added.

 Next steps in the investigation

The SOG has launched a manhunt for Sahdev and is probing whether the network has connections beyond Gujarat. Forensic analysis of the seized hybrid ganja is underway to determine its composition and potency. “This seizure is significant not only for its value but for the fact that it points to the growing availability of potent, hybrid strains in the city,” an SOG officer said.

Both accused remain in police custody as the investigation continues.